Posts Tagged ‘tourism’

Tourist Minister Uzi Landau and Taglit-Birthright presented American Jewish billionaire Sheldon Adelson with an honorary award on innovation and excellence in global tourism at the Second Jerusalem International Tourism Summit.

Adelson has “changed the face of tourism on three continents,” said the speakers who awarded the gambling casino tycoon.

Last week, Birthright Israel said Adelson is contributing another $40 million for the 10-day trips to Israel for young Jewish adults who never have visited the country.

Israeli restaurants and hotels are more interested n seeking kosher certification from the American-based Orthodox Union (OU) in order to attract foreign tourists, according to the Kosher Today newsletter.

It said that many American Jewish tourists generally are more familiar with the OU than Israeli rabbinic certifications.

The OU operates in Israel in an office near downtown Jerusalem and has several kosher supervisors.

Not all restaurants are willing to accept OU supervision. Kosher Today noted that the La Cuisine restaurant decided to forfeit its OU certification for Passover rather than agree to its requirements for proper cleaning of the facility before the holiday.

The Israeli Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal recently arrested an Iranian national and turned him over to local authorities on suspicion of spying. He had hidden his Iranian passport and possessed a fake Israeli passport, according the Himalayan Times reported Monday,

The suspect was identified as Mohsin Khosravian, who was arrested Saturday a week ago.

Officials at the Embassy said he “carried a tourist map of the Lazimpat area,” where the Israeli mission is located, an indication he might have been preparing to attack Israeli tourists.

Khosravian made “frequent and suspicious visits” to the Israeli Embassy area, but he told police after his arrest that he had left his hotel room to look for a place to repair his laptop.

He also claimed he traveled to Nepal on his way to Europe to seek asylum because he faces losses in his garment business.

Officials caught up with him when his wife, who is from Thailand, and two of his relatives from Iran arrived in Kathmandu from Bangkok to meet with him.

The Nepalese newspaper reported that the suspected spy entered Malaysia on his Iranian passport last month and then obtained a fake Israeli passport, under the name “Alexander,” in Kuala Lumpur. He allegedly used it receive an “on arrival” visa when he landed at the Nepalese airport on April 3.

The Nepal Police’s Central Bureau of Investigation and Special Bureau have launched investigation into his activities and possible terrorist links.

Last year, Turkish police said they busted an Iranian spy ring, and Indian police deported an Iranian national who was caught spying on a Chabad House, a synagogue and other places where Jews gather.

The Histadrut national labor union has called off its planned shutdown of Ben Gurion Airport Tuesday morning, and workers of Israeli airlines have ended their strike following a special agreement between the government and El Al.

The agreement was signed Monday evening in Israel, less than two hours before the Labor Court was to meet on a petition to issue an injunction against shutting down the airport.

Flights of El Al, Israir and Arkia airlines have been grounded since Sunday because of the Open Skies agreement that the Cabinet approved at the beginning of the week.

The Finance Ministry agreed to reimburse El Al for almost of all of its extraordinary security expenses, which make it less competitive against European airlines that can fly more planes to Israel under the Open Skies agreement.

The Histadrut national labor union will shut down Ben Gurion Airport for five hours Tuesday morning in a solidarity move with employees of El Al, Arkia and Israir. They shut down the three airlines starting Sunday morning because of their opposition to the “open-skies” agreement, which will not go into effect until next April.

Tuesday’s strike will start at 5 a.m. and end at 10 a.m., a period in which there are fewer flights than in the afternoon. However, it could be the opening shot towards a total shutdown unless the government and airline employees can come to an agreement to alter the agreement that the Cabinet approved Sunday morning.

The employees of El Al, Arkia and Israir are concerned about possible layoffs because the agreement is designed to increase competition and lower air fares.

The government has argued that the agreement will create jobs by increasing tourism, but that will not necessarily help the Israeli airlines.

Management of El Al also is against the agreement, maintaining that it gives foreign airlines an unfair advantage over the national carriers and allows more landings for European airlines while not offering El Al similar opportunities in Europe.

El Al has cancelled all flights that were scheduled to take off before 9 p.m. (2 p.m. EDT) as its workers continue to strike even after the Cabinet approved the European-Mediterranean Sea “Open Skies” aviation agreement. Click here to understand the agreement and why the unions are striking.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “The goal of the reform that we approved today is to lower the prices of flights to and from Israel and to increase incoming tourism.”

Employees of El Al, Arkia and Israir airlines are out to prove the opposite and have announced that the strike will continue until further notice.The cancelled Arkia flights seriously affect tourism in Eilat.

The strike does not affect other airlines, and thousands of furious passengers, besides cursing the airlines, have vowed never to fly with them again.